Centrifugal pumps operate below their nominal capacity when handling gas–liquid flows. This problem is sensitive to many variables, such as the impeller speed and the liquid flow rate. Several works evaluate the effect of operating conditions in the pump performance, but few bring information about the associated gas–liquid flow dynamics. Studying the gas phase behavior, however, can help understanding why the pump performance is degraded depending on the operating condition. In this context, this paper presents a numerical and experimental study of the motion of bubbles in a centrifugal pump impeller. The casing and the impeller of a commercial pump were replaced by transparent components to allow evaluating the bubbles' trajectories through high-speed photography. The bubble motion was also evaluated with a numerical particle-tracking method. A good agreement between both approaches was found. The numerical model is explored to evaluate how the bubble trajectories are affected by variables such as the bubble diameter and the liquid flow rate. Results show that the displacement of bubbles in the impeller is hindered by an increase of their diameter and impeller speed but facilitated by an increase of the liquid flow rate. A force analysis to support understanding the pattern of the bubble trajectories was provided. This analysis should enlighten the readers about the dynamics leading to bubble coalescence inside an impeller channel, which is the main reason behind the performance degradation that pumps experience when operating with gas–liquid flows.
In view of the possibilities for hydrate formation caused by carbon dioxiderich fluids in the production lines of the Brazilian Pre-Salt fields, this study focus on experimental measurements to obtain fundamental insight into the phase behavior of carbon dioxide hydrate forming systems. This work considers the influence of sodium chloride and ethanol, hydrate inhibitors, on this phase behavior and its implications to practical applications. In addition, the inhibiting effect of ethanol on hydrates was compared with that of sodium chloride at the same mass fractions. The carbon dioxide hydrate phase behavior was measured using a high-pressure equilibrium cell in the temperature range of 272−279 K and pressures up to 3.9 MPa. Experimental measurements using the isothermal method were performed by monitoring the pressure response of the system with volume changes. Enthalpies of dissociation for carbon dioxide hydrates were estimated from the measured three-phase (L w −H−V) data by applying the Clausius−Clapeyron equation. Results showed that, at the same mass fraction of the inhibitor and high-pressure conditions, the sodium chloride exhibited a superior inhibiting effect compared to that of the ethanol.
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